work

I never write about my work but my profile will tell you I'm a social worker for a non-profit. It's a pretty big part of my identity although I don't put in very many hours right now. The problem is that it's hard to talk about my job when everything I do is confidential. I certainly can't just hop online and vent when I'm stressed. Here's the basic job description though for anyone that might find it interesting.

I work in the adoptions field as a contracted social worker for a private agency. Sounds fancy but basically the government of BC oversees all adoptions related to child protection issues, older children, and/or children who have or are expected to have special needs. They contract out what they call "low risk newborn" adoptions and any out of country applications to non-profit agencies. That's where I come in.

The three main areas I might get called for are the home study, birth parent counselling or post-placement visits. The home study is the biggest piece and I generally spend an evening a week for 8 weeks with a couple/family that wants to adopt a child. We dig into all kinds of personal issues like their family history, motivation for adoption and how they deal with stress, anger and conflict. It's all over the map and requires a high level of engagement. At the end of that I write a long report and essentially either approve them for a placement or not. I feel that stress sometimes but for the most part I deal with fabulous people who are looking to provide a stable home for a child who needs it.

Birth parent counselling is the least predictable work. I meet with the birth mom and occasionally the dad prior to the adoption, often through the final months of pregnancy. We go through the emotional, financial and social pressures they are under and try to figure out if it's the most appropriate choice. If they want to continue we go through the procedure of selecting adoptive parents and then often meeting them. I support them through the time of placement and meet with them a few times afterwards, depending on their needs.

Post placement reports are the icing on the cake. I meet with families that have had children placed with them. I've been doing this long enough in this area that I've often done the home study for the families that are getting placements. In those cases I know them quite well and it's cool to visit them in their home and ask them to brag about their children. It's obviously not always all good but the majority of placements I see (at about 6 months to a year in) are positive. I would love to see how the families are doing years later but don't usually get those updates.

So that's what I'm up to when I'm "at work".